We all know that not everyone has friends, family and food to enjoy during the holidays. If you do, why not show your gratitude by providing those things to others? From nursing home residents in need of a little conversation to families struggling to put a turkey on the table, there’s a volunteer opportunity for you to make their holidays happier.
Food is a major part of any holiday tradition, but one that many people struggle to afford. Fortunately, there’s several ways volunteers can turn someone else’s hopes for a hot holiday meal into reality.
To help the hungry in your area, get in touch with your local food bank. The organization will likely be sponsoring a turkey drive or a holiday meal delivery service and could use a hand taking in donations, preparing meals and delivering dinners.
If service with a smile is more your style, serve a holiday meal to the hungry. Local newspapers often run listings of charities in need of volunteers to cook and serve dinner. Churches, youth organizations and community outreach offices are likely candidates to host events, and city hall is also a good source for finding holiday dinners in your community.
Company is another great gift to give during the holidays, especially to people in nursing homes who may have no visitors otherwise. Call facilities in your area, search the volunteer sites below or visit The Holiday Project to find out who’s welcoming visitors. If you’d like to give more than just your time, nursing homes are also often looking for gift donations for residents around the holidays.
Gift drives for kids are also a great way to make sure no one goes without this Christmas. In addition to donating presents, you can staff a gift drop-off site for a local toy drive or volunteer with the Marines' Toys For Tots program.
However you want to volunteer during the holidays, you can find opportunities like these online through Idealist, VolunteerMatch and ServeNet. Happy holidays to all!
Source: BecauseAction.com
